The Starlog Project: Starlog #49, August 1981: Bond Is Back

Starlog kicks off its sixth year of life by focusing on the new James Bond flick and some of the biggest names in the industry (such as someone called George Lucas). On the merchandising side, the magazine releases its calendar for 1982, this time featuring paintings from the Brothers Hildebrandt's Atlantis.

Starlog #49
68 pages (including covers)
Cover price: $2.50

Ever since Moonraker took James Bond into space, Bond has been an accepted member of the science-fiction community. He grabs the cover of this issue and is represented in the forms of much special-effects coverage (but little else) in #49.

In Kerry O'Quinn's From the Bridge column, the publisher challenges readers to imagine life without a god; Communications letters range from someone trying to get a job as an extra on Revenge (yep, still being called that) of the Jedi, to excitement over the space shuttle's initial launch (finally), to a Swede defending her country for rating The Empire Strikes Back so that children can't see it, to more celebrity anniversary greetings (Gene Roddenberry, Howard Weinstein, John Carpenter, etc.), and more; short news items in Log Entries include the Brothers Hildebrandt's Clash of the Titans movie poster (they were forced to make it more Star Wars-y), updates on some Disney movies, neon sculpture, an LP record of Carl Sagan's Cosmos, and more.

Steve Swires interviews Escape from New York stars Kurt Russell and Adrienne Barbeau; David Hutchison examines the storyboarding of the SFX in Raiders of the Lost Ark; Don McGregor interviews Bond special effects wizard Derek Meddings; David Hirsch's In Syndication column visits NATPE -- the National Association of Television Program Executives -- to learn about how producers are selling their shows to TV stations; Bjo Trimble's Fan Scene gives guidance on how to publish a fanzine; Don McGregor continues the Bond SFX coverage by penning a retrospective look at special effects for many past James Bond films; Michael A. Banks reports on the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia; it's part two of James H. Burns' interview with Star Trek veteran George Takei; an unbylined article previews the New World Pictures dark science-fiction film Mind Warp, including a photo of production designer James Cameron working on his designs for the movie; in the wake of Raiders of the Lost Ark's success, Peter Sullivan gives an overview of past movie serials; Kerry O'Quinn's second portion of a three-part interview with George Lucas explores the movie-maker's early life and his intentions for Star Wars; David Gerrold's Rumblings column once again urges readers to be heard in the debate over funding America's space program; part two of the magazine's fifth-anniversary contest features a trivia quiz; and Howard Zimmerman's Lastword recounts how we finally got to the launch of an honest-to-goodness re-usable spaceship (the shuttle) and notes the military's plans to have a presence in space.

"I've reached that point where I want to be married, ... but I don't feel that I can impose the erratic nature of my lifestyle -- taking off at a moment's notice to another city on business for anywhere from a weekend to a couple of weeks -- on someone as the foundation for a solid relationship. I wouldn't want to drastically change myself because I don't see marriage as something you should have to alter yourself for. I want to have a partner with whom I could share, but unfortunately, there's no immediate candidate right now."

--George Takei, actor and author (Mirror Friend, Mirror Foe), interviewed by James H. Burns: "George Takei: Part II"

To view previous Starlog issue descriptions, click on "Starlog Internet Archive Project" in the keywords below.